


Strange Bedfellows

by FemaleSpock



Category: Carmilla (Web Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/F, Hate to Love, Vampire Danny Lawrence, Vampires
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-05-25
Updated: 2015-10-18
Packaged: 2018-04-01 06:03:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 11,208
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4008637
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FemaleSpock/pseuds/FemaleSpock
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A newly-turned Danny is sent to room with Carmilla, who is less than thrilled at the prospect of babysitting her mother's latest devotee. Canon AU, eventual Carmilla/Danny.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Carmilla was in the middle of an excellent book when her door burst unexpectedly open. Okay, perhaps it was only a good book or rather, an acceptably average book but, in the scheme of things, even a mediocre book was preferable to the company the vast majority of people. She only hoped it wasn’t that annoyingly chirpy floor-don again because, if there was another 'surprise room inspection', she might actually have to kill someone.

 

She put aside her book and dragged herself off her bed, hoping that she looked every inch as irritated as she felt.

 

The first thing she noted about the stranger standing in her room was that she wasn’t the floor don, nor the floor don’s constant companion, though she was ginger like the two of them – perhaps she was their secret love child? Carmilla smirked a little at that notion. The second thing she noticed (indeed, she could hardly not have noticed) was that this girl was incredibly tall, even by modern standards.

 

“You’re in my room,” Carmilla said, bluntly, giving the tall girl her best glare. The girl just stood there, not seeming in the least bit deterred – not exactly the desired reaction. “That means leave.”

 

“The Dean – mother, sent me,” she said, eventually. “I’m your new roommate. She said that you would help me out. You know, show me the ropes and all that.”

 

Carmilla gave her the once over – right, a newly turned vampire, she should have spotted the signs immediately – her pupils were wide and her eyes were darting all about the room like she was seeing with new eyes (which she was in a sense). Yes, the girl seemed to vibrate with energy though give it a few decades and that would soon wear off. It should have been perfectly obvious from the off but, in fairness, it had been a long time since she’d seen one. They tended to be more trouble than they were worth. That untrained bloodlust didn’t exactly lend itself to flying under the radar.

 

Carmilla sighed and flopped back onto her bed. It was far too early for this. “Uh huh and who are you then?”

 

“Danny,” she said. 

 

Carmilla stared up at the ceiling. “How incredibly modern – and how long have you been a vampire, 'Danny', five minutes?”

 

Danny bristled. “A few days, maybe a week or so. I lost track of time, I’m sure you remember how that is.”

 

“All I know is that you better think again if you think you’re rooming here.”

 

Danny walked over to the bed opposite Carmilla’s, throwing down her bag on top of the duvet with undue force.

 

“Awww, haven’t quite got used to your new strength yet?”

 

“Don’t you dare patronise me!”

 

Exactly the reaction Carmilla had been pushing for – this girl was really too easy. You would think that if mother was going to go to the trouble of making new vampires, she would have at least have picked someone intelligent. On the other hand if Will were anything to go by then that certainly wasn’t the criteria - thinking of Will actually gave her an idea, so at least he was good for something. “Sorry, sweetheart but you know what? How about you go live with brother Will instead. I’m sure you’ll find he’s much more receptive than I.”

 

She glanced over at Danny to see her reaction and got a blank stare in return.

 

“Don’t tell me mother hasn’t introduced you to our dear brother? Well, that’s the thing about her – she’s doesn’t exactly practice what she preaches when it comes to family values. She sent you out into the world with barely a clue about what you are and what you can do – hate to break it to you but that’s not exactly the action of a loving mother.”

 

“She said that I should come here, to you, and I’m not leaving,” Danny said, stubbornly. "She warned me you might be a little... _difficult_."

 

Carmilla sighed again. It figured her mother would try to stick her with this. She’d probably chosen the most irritating girl she could find to turn just to try and teach her some kind of lesson. When this Danny inevitably got herself staked, Carmilla would be blamed for allowing them all to be exposed to the threat of vampire hunters and would be tasked with bringing in yet more girls to make up for her crime.

 

Danny got up abruptly, darting with that inhuman speed, interrupting Carmilla’s thoughts – what was she doing now? It was probably too much to hope that she was on her way out.

 

_Pop!_

 

By the time Carmilla had turned to look, Danny had managed to unscrew the lid of one of Carmilla’s jars and was chugging the stuff like a fresher who’d just discovered the wonders of cheap store-brand vodka.  The blood was dripping down from her mouth as she guzzled, without a care for the fact that she was staining her white t-shirt. Now this was exactly why you couldn’t take new-born vamps anywhere.

 

Carmilla had half a mind to interrupt; it was, after all, _her_ blood that Danny had decided to take without to much as asking but she knew there was no point. The centuries had done nothing to dim the memories of being fresh turned and _hungry._ So hungry that the mere scent of blood was overwhelming – and the _taste_ , the taste of blood against the sharp screech of hunger was nothing less than a pure manifestation of joy.

 

There was no way that she could win against that. So she waited. Probably wouldn’t take long the rate Danny was going.

 

The jar slipped from Danny’s fingertips when she was done and it had become irrelevant. She barely seemed to notice the crack of the jar against the floor. She was staring, her pupils extremely dilated – if Carmilla didn’t know any better, she would have said that she was extremely high.

 

“Now that you’ve helped yourself to my blood, you can be on your way,” Carmilla said. “But clean up that mess first – god, you newbies are always so sloppy.” Whilst it was true that the room was less than spotless – one of the benefits of being roommate-less was that you could just leave clothes or books or papers (whatever really) around in whatever arrangement you liked – but mess only suited Carmilla when it was _her_ mess.

 

“Sorry,” said Danny, though she didn’t sound especially convincing (it was hard to be very sorry in the warm and hazy rush of blood). “It was just sitting out there and I just couldn’t…”

 

“…which is exactly why you should just go. I have no time for-” Danny started to blur around the room, testing out her speed as much as she could in the meagre space. Carmilla traced her movements and jolted, similarly fast, in the direction Danny was headed. She caught Danny’s arm, yanking her to a temporary standstill, feeling Danny pull against her. She would say this for the girl – she was strong. “I have no time for little baby vampires who are so amazed by half-stale blood that they can’t control themselves.”

 

Carmilla could see something pass over Danny’s face. She looked calmer perhaps – probably the initial blood rush wearing off - but there was a strange glint in her eye. “You must have been just like me once, so you can’t exactly act like you’re above it all.” Her head was held high, her chin jutted sharply out, considering Carmilla carefully - probably looking for an excuse to fight, just raring to test her skills.

 

“If I was, it was a long time ago,” Carmilla drawled, letting go of Danny’s arm so she could retreat back her comfortable lounging position on her bed.

 

“How long?” The anger in Danny’s tone was immediately replaced by curiosity – which was arguably even more annoying. Carmilla had a feeling that mother had made a point of telling this Danny as little as possible just so that she would badger Carmilla with a thousand stupid questions.

 

“Has no-one ever told you that it’s rude to ask a lady her age?”  Carmilla picked up her book and pretended to be engrossed, hoping to would put Danny off asking further questions.

 

“You don’t look older than 22, maybe 24 at a push,” Danny persisted and Carmilla could feel her eyes scrutinising her.

 

“Looks are deceiving.”

 

“So how old are you then?”

 

“I was born in the 17th Century - I’ll allow you to do the maths, college girl.”

 

Danny was quiet for a minute and Carmilla wondered whether she was actually doing as she suggested. Perhaps she had been stunned into silence, unable to take it all in.

 

Alas, Danny began to talk again – dashing Carmilla’s hopes. “You’re in college too… but I’m guessing it’s probably not the first time.”

 

“Well obviously. You have that to look forward to yourself. Just be grateful that you didn’t get stuck in high school for all eternity.”

 

Danny snorted. “Was that a sneaky Twilight reference? Don’t tell me the big old know-it all vampire has actually read that piece of crap?”

 

“It’s kind of hard to avoid it. It was everywhere for a while,” Carmilla said, coolly, not rising to the bait. “Besides, I just had to read the book that was disgracing the name of vampires everywhere. You know it’s bad when you get the vampire actually rooting for the werewolves…”

 

“Wait, are werewolves real?” Danny asked, sounding all too excited. She pounded her fist against her hand. “And are they really our sworn enemies? Because I’m fully ready to take one on!”

 

Carmilla berated herself for getting carried away in her rant – now she’d only given Danny more things to ask questions about. “They’re not organised enough to really warrant the term enemies – they’re more like big dumb beasts that veer between wanting to bite your hand off and trying to hump your leg but  be my guest if you want to go hunt one. The door’s right there.”

 

“What other types of creatures are there?” There was a barely disguised eagerness in Danny's voice, like an entire new world was opening up before her eyes, and it did nothing but make Carmilla feel extremely weary. 

 

“Far too many to list. Just go to the library if you’re so interested.” If it was a challenge that Danny wanted, then Silas’ Library would more than provide that.

 

“But-”

 

“No. I’m tired.” Carmilla put her book aside and turned away to face the wall, closing her eyes.

 

“Now you mention it, I’m a little sleepy too – I guess that’s part of that whole vampires sleeping during the day thing?”

 

Carmilla made an incoherent sound – she’d already made it perfectly clear that she was going to be answering no more questions today.

 

There was the sound of things moving around and then, the click of the light going off. Carmilla thought that perhaps Danny would leave but the creaking of the springs in the nearby bed told her otherwise.

 

“Fine, you can stay – just for today,” Carmilla mumbled, as though she actually had any choice in the matter. Clearly, she wasn’t going to persuade Danny to leave, arguing with her was like struggling against quicksand, and Carmilla wasn’t exactly in the mood for a physical fight. She was sure that her own experience and carefully managed strength would eventually overcome the advantages of Danny’s height and childish enthusiasm in the event that there were a fight but it would probably take a while and the brawl would certainly cause quite a bit of damage to the room. 

 

No, she was just going to have to take the subtle approach to this one and get Danny to want to leave of her own accord. It shouldn’t be too hard; after all, she’d been told many times over the centuries that she was a terrible roommate.

 

Notes

This fic basically came about as a result of me musing upon how utterly terrifying Danny would be as a vampire – I mean, she’s athletic, determined and has a great capacity for loyalty. I feel like that would make her a very dangerous if she were to fight for the wrong person or cause. I'm picturing that it would be set the year before Laura showed up at Silas in the canon time-line. 

So yeah, I hope you enjoyed chapter one; I’d really appreciate if you would leave me a comment and let me know what you think!


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Carmilla does her best to make the dorm as inhospitable for Danny as possible.

The room was different when Carmilla awoke – it was hard to place in the haze of waking but it was definitely different.

 

“Ugh,” she said as she realised that the room was tidy, or rather, one half of the room was tidy. It was like there was an invisible line through the middle of the room; everything Carmilla owned (i.e. all the mess) had been pushed so that it lay in untidy, mountainous piles around Carmilla’s bed. 

 

That wasn’t all that was different; Danny, who Carmilla could hear showering in the bathroom, had evidently found time to unpack her belongings and had arranged everything neatly on her side. There was an orange blanket spread over the bed. On the bedside table there was a small stack of books – ‘North and South’; ‘The Iliad’ (translated into English, Carmilla noted smugly); ‘Catcher in the Rye’; ‘Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit’ and ‘Dracula’. Carmilla just had to roll her eyes at that one.

 

In the corner there was a black bag, not unlike a body bag (but smaller of course). Carmilla padded over and unzipped it, revealing some kind of bow inside. The bathroom door creaked open and Danny stepped out, hair wrapped in a towel.

 

“What’s with the bow, Katniss?” Carmilla asked.

 

“Never heard that one before,” Danny said, sarcastically. “It’s for hunting – I’m in the Summer Society.”

 

The name sounded vaguely familiar to Carmilla though she’d never had much conception of what it was beyond some kind of women’s athletics club. She had a tendency to space out whenever girls started talking about their extracurriculars; it was just incredibly dull to hear them drone on about such trivialities as though they actually mattered. 

 

Danny strolled over to her bedside table and plucked a hair bobble out from a draw. She tossed the towel over onto a nearby chair and tied her damp hair into ponytail. Slinging a backpack over her shoulder, she headed for the door. “I’ll see you later.”

 

“Wait, where exactly do you think you’re going?” As much as Carmilla wanted her to leave, it didn’t look like Danny was going permanently (that she’d bothered to unpack her things was evidence enough of that).

 

“I’m going to class,” Danny said, as though that should have been obvious. “I didn’t think I needed your permission.”

 

“Mother said that I was responsible for you, so I don’t want you running off and biting someone, because it’ll be me who gets it in the neck.”

 

“I don’t feel hungry but if I start to feel pangs I’ll excuse myself from class and come back here.” Danny crossed her arms in front of her chest. “Besides, Mother said that I should try to maintain my class and social schedule. It's not much of a cover otherwise."

 

“Won’t it look a little suspicious if you just split in the middle of class? What if your classmates realise there’s something different about you?” Carmilla persisted, more out of stubbornness than anything else. Mother’s word was law - centuries had passed and that had not changed. “As much as I would like to see you dusted, it’s not worth my life.”

 

“From my classmates’ perspective I’m just recovering from a semi-serious bout of illness anyway. If I seem strange, then they’ll just think it’s from that.”

 

Carmilla shrugged. “Fine, whatever.”

 

“See you later.” Danny strode out of the room like she had won something and Carmilla was struck with the sudden impulse to pull her back and put her in place. But she let her go. Now that Danny was gone, Carmilla at least had the room to do what she wanted with and, come to think of it, she’d been thinking about redecorating. 

 

* * *

 

 

The door opened abruptly. Clearly Danny hadn't gotten used to her new strength because she always made the simple act of walking in and out of rooms seem entirely too violence. There was a moment of shocked silence before the outrage began. “Why would you do this?”

 

“Hmmmm,” said Carmilla, not looking up from the book. “What are you babbling about now?”

 

“You know full well what I’m talking about! I’m talking about your mess being on _my_ side of the room.”

 

Carmilla looked up from the book for a second, surveying the room as though it were a surprise. She looked Danny in the eye and shrugged, returning to the book.

 

“You might be happy to live in squalor and that’s fine but I refuse to,” Danny ranted.

 

“I couldn’t help it; I just tripped on one of those piles you left around my bed and well…everything fell.” Carmilla hid her smile behind the book.

 

Danny marched over and snatched the book from Carmilla’s hands. “I don’t believe that for one second and…this is my book! And of course you’ve taken the bookmark out. Unbelievable!”

 

“What’s the matter, lose your place? Like that’s the biggest tragedy,” Carmilla muttered. "You know, you have a lot to learn about how the world works, Red..."

 

“I didn’t even want to read 'Catcher in the Rye' in the first place,” raged Danny. “I don’t exactly feel like going over sections of it again just because you decided that you could help yourself to my possessions!”

 

“I guess someone never learned to share – let me guess you were an only child?” Carmilla said, before stopping and considering. “And wait, you don’t like Catcher in the Rye – it’s a literary classic – though I suppose I didn’t really expect you to have taste.”

 

“I’m well aware of that. I’m a Lit Major – not that you bothered to ask. That it’s considered a classic doesn’t automatically make it good.”

 

Carmilla had to admit that she had a point, throughout the ages she’d seen many pieces of drivel lauded as works of genius, though she wasn’t going to tell Danny that. “Go on then, let’s hear what little miss undergraduate thinks she knows about literature.”

 

“It’s just Holden – he’s so frustrating!” Danny burst out. “He’s meant to be this incredibly relatable character but all he does is just go around dismissing everyone and everything as ‘phony.’ It’s like, I swear, if I have to read that word one more time…And of course you like it – I’m sure his inner monologue greatly resembles your own.”

 

Carmilla shrugged. “’Phony’ isn’t exactly how I refer to people but…”

 

Danny seemed to realise that she’d gotten de-railed from her original point, interrupting Carmilla before she could finish what she was saying. “The point is that we should each just keep our own possessions on our own sides. Okay?”

 

“I've got to go,” said Carmilla, ignoring Danny's request. “I’ve got to get to lecture on Zeno.” She slunk out of the room, a smirk on her face, knowing that she had won this one.

                   

* * *

 

 

The room was pretty much back in order when Carmilla got back. She could only imagine how long it must have taken for Danny to get it back into this semblance of neatness; in her mind’s eye she could see her ranting to herself about Carmilla as she rearranged the room. It was enough to bring a smirk to her face.

 

“The room looks nice,” Carmilla said to Danny, who was sitting on her bed reading 'Catcher in the Rye', a frown on her face.

 

Danny didn’t respond – ah the silent treatment, a classic sign that you were getting to someone. Carmilla wandered over to the fridge for a celebratory snack. She gaped as she found the fridge empty but for an apple.

 

“Why is the blood gone?” Carmilla said, an edge to her voice now. “Don’t tell that you had another freak-out and guzzled the entire lot in one go?”

 

“Well, putting the room back was such hard work that I found myself a little parched – you don’t mind do you? After all, you were all for sharing before.” Danny’s eyes were wide in a poor approximation of innocence.

 

Carmilla walked slowly over to Danny’s bed, standing over her like a shadow. Her instincts, her hunger, were telling her to fight – to scratch, even to kill. She could feel her hands clench up into fists. Her body tensed, ready for confrontation, she had muscle memories dating back centuries. This was second nature and she’d abandoned her first nature the day she was murdered.

 

Danny’s expression changed, a shadow passing over her face and a spark of something – fear? Excitement?  Danny put aside the book and got up off the bed, towering over Carmilla once again. Carmilla doesn’t back down; if Danny thinks that all she has to do to intimidate her is stand tall then she has another thing coming. The look in Danny’s eye just seemed to be willing Carmilla to make the first move so she’d have to excuse to just give in to the violence and Carmilla wondered what her Mother had told Danny to inspire such restraint.

 

Carmilla wasn’t going to give Danny what she wanted.

 

She got close, watching as Danny stiffened. “I’m going out to get more blood.”

 

“Right,” Danny said, her voice hoarse. Carmilla could see her deflate a little; she was disappointed.

 

Carmilla turned away, breaking the spell. As she left the room, on the way to the blood-bank, she couldn’t help but feel that they’d managed to come to some kind of uneasy truce. 

 

She was just going to have to play the long game with this one – outright conflict was clearly too exciting to Danny. Patience would be her truest ally: if she could survive decades buried underground with nothing but her own thoughts for company, she could survive one annoying little vampire for the time being.

 

Notes

 

That’s it for this chapter – hope you enjoyed it! Please leave a comment to let me know what you thought.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The girls deal with an annoying surprise visitor.

It’d been a couple of days since the last incident and the two of them had fallen into a routine of silent seething and pretence that the other did not exist. It was an uneasy state of being and Carmilla knew could not last for much longer. They'd lapse into fighting unless they found a way to get along and indeed, Carmilla had a plan for that but she knew that if she appeared to capitulate too soon it would just appear suspicious. No, she needed to wait, to look for an opening. She’d had years of experience taking girls, knowing just how and when to make her moves – this wasn’t that much different.    

 

“Hey,” Carmilla said, breaking the silence that had settled over the room. “I’m going to go to-”

 

The door swung open without warning, interrupting Carmilla mid-sentence. “I’ve been sent here to see how you two ladies are getting on,” Will said, leaning casually in the doorway.

 

Carmilla groaned. “I should have guessed you’d show up sooner or later - of course you’d interrupt just as I was about to get to class. Don’t you ever get tired of being mother’s little messenger boy?”

 

“What’s the matter, sis, worried about your grades?” Will asked, mockingly. “Because, I don’t think repeating college again is going to help at this point. And hey, if you flunk, it's not like you know the Dean or anything.”

 

 “Are you Will?” Danny asked, looking at him intently, clearly unsure of what to think of this stranger standing in the door.  

 

“Oh well done on getting that one,” Carmilla muttered, sarcastically. "What was it that tipped you off?"

 

“Yep, that’s me.  You must be Danny – mother’s told me so much about you. I’d like to welcome you to the family. I hope that my dear sister’s sunny personally hasn’t been too off-putting.”

 

“Don’t worry, I can handle her,” Danny said, holding her head up high.

 

Carmilla snorted but she knew that it would be bad news if Danny and Will bonded and decided to gang up against her; she could handle each on their own, she was certain of that, but the both of them together might cause a problem. Double the vampire-minions meant double the eyes on her as she took her chances ruining opportunities. 

 

Will let out surprised laugh. “Oh this is going to be interesting.”

 

“Interesting, that’s one word for it,” Carmilla said, under her breath. 

 

Will gave a lecherous smile. “If you girls want to wrestle, you know – work through your tension, I’m happy to referee.”

 

Danny made an outraged sound and stepped forward – Carmilla stepped in front of her to cut her off, putting her arm across Danny’s body as a restraint. This was an opportunity but it wasn’t going to work if these two hot-heads started brawling.

 

“You’ve been hanging with those frat ‘bros’ far too long. You’re starting to talk like them,” said Carmilla, pulling a face like she’d just tasted something disgusting. In truth, she was glad that Will hadn't managed to restrain his vile tendencies - as much as he and Danny both seemed devoted to the cause, there was no way that Danny would put up with this kind of gross sexism long enough for them work together. Danny seemed more likely to punch him and it wasn't like he didn't royally deserve it. But now was not the right time. 

 

“It’s called creating a convincing cover - something you seem incapable of. The whole ‘brooding loner’ thing just screams vampire. But speaking of my cover, I have to get back: I’m helping the Zetas plan a rocking party.” He turned to Danny, leering a little. “You should come along. There’s always plenty of tasty hotties – if you catch my meaning.”

 

“She got it, it wasn’t exactly subtle,” said Carmilla, feeling Danny twitch against her, just raring to go.

 

Will smiled, seemingly unaffected. “Until next time, sweet sisters.”

 

“Thanks for wasting my time,” Carmilla said.

 

“Don’t rush back!” Danny said, in tones of faux-sweetness, to his retreating back.

 

He left the door just handing open. Carmilla moved from her position, essentially releasing Danny, closing the door firmly.

 

“He’s…” Danny started.

 

“A sexist idiot?” Carmilla supplied. “Yeah, well get used to it. Like my mother said this is your ‘family’ now…forever. I hope that makes you happy.”

 

Danny looked kind of uncertain and Carmilla knew that it was time to offer Danny something.

 

“Hey,” Carmilla said, putting on her smoothest voice. It came naturally; she’d had a lot of experience at pretending to be someone that she wasn't. “I think that maybe we should call a truce.”

 

The muscles in Danny’s face slackened a little, clearly taken off guard. “A truce?”

 

“Yeah, you know – I leave your stuff alone you leave my stuff alone, that way everyone’s happy,” said Carmilla, letting a little of her annoyance filter into her voice to make it more real.

 

“That’s fine with me.” Danny’s tone gave very little away. She was a stubborn one, Carmilla would give her that. 

 

“Look,” Carmilla said, softening her tone. Her study-buddies always lapped this up, the whole bad-girl with vulnerability routine, they just loved to believe that they could be the one to _change_ her wicked ways. “I know I may not have welcomed you at first but you were right, we are both in the same position. I see that now. I’ll teach you whatever you need to know and then we’ll go our separate ways.”

 

“How do I know this isn’t a trick?” Danny asked, crossing her arms in front of her chest.

 

“Because I don’t want Will on my case, understand,” Carmilla said. “I’m sure we both want to minimise the number of visits he makes to this dorm.”

 

“Fine,” Danny said. “I agree – truce.” She put her hand out to shake, which Carmilla just ignored. 

 

“Alright, if we’re going to do this, you’re going to have to tell me exactly what it is I’m meant to be teaching you because it seems like you know everything already,” said Carmilla. This was something she was actually curious about in fact – mother always had an agenda and it was usually better to know what it was sooner rather than later. There were always consequences to getting in her way.

 

“Well, I know a lot. She told me about the sacrifice to keep the school safe. That we have to gently persuade the girls so that they don’t panic for nothing. Subtly isn’t always my strong suit so she said that you could teach me how to best prepare them?” Danny said, seriously. 

 

Carmilla’s blood ran cold as something clicked in her mind. The sacrifice was next year and all of a sudden mother was making new vampires. Carmilla tried to calm herself, not to show any reaction, it could mean any number of things – that the sacrifice had gotten larger or just that mother thought that things would run more smoothly…But Carmilla couldn’t help but think that mother knew that she’d been letting girls go and that she was, in effect, getting her to train her replacement – a replacement who seemed to have been given with the mistaken impression that the sacrificing girls was somehow for the greater good.

 

If she was going to avoid another coffin of blood style punishment, she was going to have to play this very carefully.

 

“Right,” Carmilla said, looking Danny up and down. “I’d call it seduction rather than persuasion but I can see why you might struggle with that.” In truth Danny was rather attractive – if you liked that sort of thing – but Carmilla wasn’t about to say so.

 

Danny’s nostril’s flared a little. “Well that truce lasted all of five seconds. I should have known that you couldn’t be civil.”

 

“Relax, Xena. It was just a joke. You’re going to have to find a sense of humour, it’s the only thing that makes living forever even half-way bearable,” said Carmilla, putting a hand on Danny’s arm. “I’ll even help teach you how to drawn in girls, just like mother asked me to.”

 

Danny gave a strange grimace of a smile. “Fine.”

 

“Good.” Carmilla yawned, this whole business had been kind of exhausting. “Can we start tomorrow though? I think I’m going to take a nap.”

 

“I thought you were going to class?”

 

Carmilla glanced at the clock. “Well, I’m already twenty minutes late and I always say better never than late so…” 

 

“Right, fine, tomorrow then,” Danny said, wandering over to her bed, to get back to her reading.

 

Carmilla noted that she was still trying to get through Catcher In the Rye but decided not to bring it up (the resulting argument would have undone all her good work), instead flopping on her own bed. She was going to have a long day ahead of her.

-

Notes: Sorry that this chapter is kind of short but it just seemed like this was a natural place to end it.

 

As ever, please leave me a comment to let me know what you thought!


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Carmilla gives Danny a lesson in luring in girls.

Carmilla awoke to the most annoying sound in the world – the sound of Danny in the morning.

 

“Alright, you’ve had your rest, now it’s time for you to fulfil your end of the bargain,” said Danny, sounding more alert than anyone had a right to at this hour – whatever hour it was.

 

“Go away,” she mumbled into her pillow.

 

“Nope! Get up!”

 

“Ugh fine,” said Carmilla, not moving from her position.

 

“That doesn’t look like moving,” said Danny. “Just get up!”

 

Carmilla neglected to reply and the room was filled with a blissful silence. For a moment she’d almost thought she’d won but then _it_ started. It started like a low irritating growl before ramping up into a full blown racket of screeches and industrial grinding sounds. 

 

Carmilla bolted up. “What _is_ that?” 

 

Danny was sitting at the computer, looking entirely too pleased with herself. “Truly horrific dubstep – always does the trick.”

 

“Turn it off.”

 

“Someone’s grumpy…” said Danny in a triumphant sing-song voice only just audible over the noise. 

 

“You’d be grumpy if you were woken up by _that_.” Carmilla put her head in her hands – it was times like this that she really regretted having extra sensitive hearing. “You’ve made your point now could you just turn it off!”

 

Danny hit something on the keyboard and the evil sound ceased.

 

“Finally!” Carmilla muttered. Sunlight was streaming into the room and it was making her eyes ache. She might not be allergic to sunlight but that sure didn’t mean that she had to like it.

 

“So, are we going to get started?” Danny asked.

 

“Give a girl a few minutes to wake up.”

 

Danny reached and grabbed a jar, passing it to Carmilla. “Here, have some blood and quit whining. I do have class today and, unlike you, I actually care about going.” She wandered over to her bed and, as if to prove her point, started packing her rucksack with novels and notebooks. 

 

Carmilla took a decent-sized swig of blood from the half-full jar; she could see a faint mark where Danny’s mouth had touched the jar but she wasn’t so bothered about that. _Ah._ That was a little better. She could feel herself waking up for real now.

 

She put the blood aside and wandered over to her wardrobe and stripped off the black t-shirt she had slept in and replaced it with another. Her wardrobe wasn’t exactly varied. She turned around and was aware of the fact that Danny was still looking intently at her. “Fine, let’s just get this over with.”

 

Carmilla wandered over and sat next to Danny on the bed. “Alright, you want to learn how to seduce girls, well here’s lesson one – it starts before you’ve even made contact. You need to pick and choose your targets. Sometimes mother makes that decision, she’ll let you know if there’s some girl we need to pick off for getting too close to things best kept secret and that’ll be that. Other times…other times, you make that choice. She can’t be everywhere and as a student you’ll have far more knowledge of potential candidates.” Carmilla started to fiddle with the ends of her hair. “You’re looking for a certain type – young, naïve, inexperienced in the ways of the world. Someone easily taken in.”

 

“Right, pure souls, I got you,” said Danny. “Then what?”

 

“Establish casual contact with her – at a party or class or whatever. Keep it short but memorable – you’ll want to retain your air of mystery. She’ll get suspicious if you want to get super-friendly all of a sudden out of no-where, so let her come to you.”

 

These were mother’s words in her mouth, bitter and familiar; Carmilla reached for the jar and took another sip of blood.

 

“Right – _mystery_ ,” Danny said, throwing her arms up. “How exactly am I meant to do that without coming off like some cheesy parody of a vampire?”

 

Carmilla exhaled loudly. “You ask her about herself – her classes, her family, her interests. When she asks you in return you give her ambiguous or short answers. Let her do the talking – god, it’s not exactly rocket science.” No, this game had been played out many times over the centuries and it was all too simple.

 

“And here I was thinking you were just rude. I guess you were being _mysterious_ all along.” 

 

Carmilla fixed Danny with a dark look; she was not taking this seriously enough. “Do you want to know the rest or not?”

 

Danny rolled her eyes. “Alright, alright, I’m listening.”

 

“You start showing up where she’ll be and let her spot you – she’ll think its fate. You start to offer her a little more; you tell her something and then pretend you wish you hadn’t said anything. You make her feel special – like you’ve never let anyone this close to you before.” Carmilla found herself leaning in closer to Danny, almost unconsciously, as she said it. She jerked away. “Of course, you’ll probably be pulling this con with several different girls so make sure they don’t know each other.”

 

“Makes sense, these girls are important – they just don’t know how important,” said Danny, seriously. “What next?”

 

“Well, when you think she’s ready, when she trusts you completely – then you take her to mother. She deals with the rest from there. Rinse, repeat.” Carmilla felt her insides twist as she spoke, images of Ell flashing unbidden through her mind.

 

“Doesn’t seem too hard,” said Danny.

 

“You think you’re ready do you?” Carmilla forced a laugh. “We haven’t even scratched the surface of things you don’t know.”

 

Danny crossed her arms in front of her chest. “I know enough and besides, it’s not that hard. It may have taken you a hundred years to understand the basics of human interaction but I think I’ve got it down.”

 

Carmilla’s mouth twisted into a smirk; she’d just gotten a brilliant idea – something to distract her from the memories. “Alright, you think you’re ready? How about a little practical demonstration then?”

 

“What do you want me to do?” Danny asked, in tones of forced flatness, the excitement still evident in the jittery energy building up in her body.

 

Carmilla made a tsk-ing sound. “So impatient. Haven’t told you it’s all about the sense of mystery?” She regarded Danny with a scornful look. “Well, I suppose such things are lost on you. Alright then, I propose that we go to a soirée and you make contact with some innocent little popsicle. Talk to her, catch her interest - just for practice. Should be easy enough, don't you think?”

 

 “Not that I’m not up for it but where are we going to find a _soirée_? This campus isn’t exactly the prime location for classy parties.”

 

“You may have a point there.” Carmilla paused, thinking about it for a moment, and sighed. “Looks like we’re going to that Zeta party tonight after all.”

 

Danny’s left eyebrow quirked up. “I thought you wanted to stay away from Will.”

 

“The good thing about the ‘secret’ part of secret order of vampires is that it means that we have to avoid each other in public…to evade suspicion,” Carmilla drawled.

 

Danny snorted. “I guess I better do the same, wouldn’t want to be connected to Will…although I probably would have said the same even if I weren’t a vampire.”

 

Carmilla tilted her head and fixed Danny with a look that seemed to signify her agreement. “Unfortunately for you that also means you’ll be denied the joy of my company. You’ll have to face the phonies all by yourself. Of course, you're the biggest phony of all so I suppose you can't really talk. ”

 

Danny clasped at her chest. “And whatever will I do without you and your oh-so hilarious literary references? The thought of being parted from you is so unbearable, I don’t know if I can take it!”

 

“Yeah, well, I know I’m irresistible but don’t pull this desperate act on any of the ladies at the party, it doesn’t tend to go over well.”

 

“I may be new at the whole vampire thing but believe it or not, I have spoken to a woman before.” There was that competitive glint in her eyes again – a look Carmilla was learning to dread.

 

“Yeah, well, don’t forget I’ll be watching you the whole time so I’ll notice if you slip up.”

 

She had complete faith that Danny would make a complete fool of herself and she was going to relish watching every minute of it.

 

Notes

Please be aware that the characters’ views on dubstep do not reflect my own! XD

 

If you liked this chapter, please leave a review and let me know what you thought! Reviews really do make my day!

 

 


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 'Danny’s back was decorated with constellations of light brown freckles in various shapes and sizes. Carmilla found herself tracing them with her eyes, searching for patterns...'

“I hope you’re going to change before the party,” Carmilla said, as Danny strode through the door, “because bright orange jeans and a hockey shirt are not exactly flattering when you’re trying to carry out a seduction.”

 

Danny shot her a withering look. “Believe it or not, I am well aware of what not to wear to a party. I suppose this ensemble,’ she looked Carmilla up and down, taking in the black corset and leather pants, “is your idea of subtlety. You look like an extra from Buffy the Vampire Slayer.”

 

Carmilla couldn't be bothered to think of a comeback for that. 

 

Realising their brief bout of verbal sparring was over, Danny went over the wardrobe and started flipping through clothing at a furious pace, eventually pulling out a dark blue dress. Without warning, Danny put the dress down on the bed and pulled off her hockey jersey over her head, revealing a teal coloured bra and several acres of pale flesh. Danny’s back was decorated with constellations of light brown freckles in various shapes and sizes. Carmilla found herself tracing them with her eyes, searching for patterns - she noted that the upper left side of her back held three freckles clustered to make the points of a triangle. She imagined touching that back, tracing the invisible lines with soft touches and- Danny darted to pick up the dress, breaking the spell. Danny put the dress on in a fluid motion, taking off the jeans after she was done, turning around to look at Carmilla.

 

Carmilla looked away, affecting an air of disinterest.

 

“Does this meet your standards?” Danny asked, putting her hands on her hips.

 

Having permission to look, Carmilla turned to gaze back at Danny. The dress was short (on Danny at least), displaying large stretches of Danny’s long legs, and sleeveless. “I suppose it’ll have to do,” Carmilla said, dismissively. In truth, the dress fitted very well - the slim gold belt that went with it emphasised Danny’s surprisingly slender waist – but Carmilla wasn’t going to give Danny the satisfaction of knowing that.

 

Danny rolled her eyes and went off to the bathroom, presumably to put on a little make-up before the party. Carmilla decided that it was the perfect time to acquire libations – she doubted the frat party would be serving up anything other than tequila shots and vodka mixed with vile energy drinks and, unlike Will, she hadn't exactly adapted to this decade's idea of good party beverages. One quick trip later (super speed was definitely one of the main benefits of being a vampire) and she had successfully completed her mission to ‘borrow’ from mother’s wine cellars.

 

“Where did you go?” asked Danny, who had finished in the bathroom by the time Carmilla got back.

 

“I acquired some champagne,” said Carmilla, gesturing to the bottle. She walked over and set both the bottle and a couple of glasses down on the desk. “I don’t suppose your palette is refined enough to truly appreciate it but I am willing to help further your education in this matter.”

 

“Thanks,” said Danny, who sounded not at all grateful for the offer, “but I prefer red.” Danny reached under her bed and produced an extremely cheap bottle of merlot. She unscrewed the top – the mere fact that it was a screw top said it all in terms of quality – and proceeded to swig directly from the bottle.

 

“Really?” Carmilla burst out. “Where did mother find you, a zoo? I swear, people in this age have no sense of manners.”

 

A slow smirk spread over Danny’s face. “Thought that might get you.” She took one of the glasses that Carmilla had left out and poured out some wine into it. Carmilla considered this only marginally better given that the glass was a champagne flute and not at all suitable for letting a red breathe properly.

 

Carmilla poured herself a glass of the champagne. She figured that if she was going to have to put up with this, then she might as well start drinking now. “Cheers,” she said, offering her glass out.

 

Danny regarded her suspiciously for a moment, as though it were a trick of some sort, before clinking her own glass against Carmilla’s. Carmilla sat down next to Danny on the bed, hearing the springs groan a little her weight.

 

Carmilla took a sip and allowed the taste to spread deliciously over her tongue. These were the things that made living forever just about bearable.

 

“That’s something I’ve been wondering about, actually – can vampires get drunk?” Danny said, suddenly. There was an earnest look of curiosity on her face and her wide eyes were entirely focused on Carmilla.

 

Carmilla shrugged. “Yes and no. Our constitution means that we process the alcohol a lot quicker but most of us have memories of drinking back when we were humans.”

 

Danny furrowed her brows. “What does that have to do with anything?”

 

Without meaning to, Carmilla found herself leaning in closer to Danny. “The mind is a strange place. The fact that we are primed to believe alcohol will get us drunk can be powerful enough to make us act all ridiculous.” Memories flitted through her mind in quick succession from the many parties and balls she had attended: getting carried away with Mattie after a long night in Saigon, waltzing with Ell once everyone else had gone home, the night that she had been murdered. She took a larger sip of champagne.

 

“Like a placebo,” said Danny, also taking another sip of her wine. “Interesting.”

 

A smile tugged at the corner of her lips. “Yes, well it’s just as well when you have to endure a frat party.”

 

Danny looked towards the door. “Speaking of, I guess we had better head over. The night’s getting on a bit.”

 

“Why are you in such a hurry to leave?” said Carmilla, a bitter tone spreading through her voice. “Don’t tell me you actually want to hang out with dear Will and his idiot friends.”

 

Danny snorted. “The point of this party is to practice my ‘skills of seduction’ or whatever, remember? I don’t want to be the last person there, awkwardly trying to break up conversations in order to find a mark.”

 

“It’s called being fashionably late. All you’re doing is showing off your lack of other social engagements if you show up right at the beginning – not a good look when you’re trying to impress a young lady with a sense of mystery.” Carmilla delicately raised the glass of champagne up to her lips and took another small sip to guard against the strange, pointless anger that was unfurling within her. 

 

Danny took a gulp of wine. “Oooh, look at me, I’m so cool – I care so little about everything around me. God forbid I show an interest in anything – it might make me seem like an actual human being for once!”

 

Irritation surged through Carmilla. “We’re not human beings. You’d do well to remember that,” she said, coolly.

 

“Slip of the tongue – but my point still stands,” persisted Danny.

 

“Whatever,” said Carmilla, putting her empty champagne flute down on the side. “Let’s just get to the party and we’ll see if you’re right.”

 

She felt oddly empty.

 

Notes

Sorry for the slow update; I went on an unexpected holiday!

 

I figured that with this chapter I’d try to play off of episode 17 with little callbacks (Carmilla’s outfit, the champagne) but obviously not to make it identical (because hey, plagiarism and also the situation is very different). Also, I'm not sure if Sharon Belle has freckles irl but I gave Danny freckles in this because they're pretty common in pale-skinned, ginger people. 

 

Please leave me a comment to let me know what you thought of the chapter – I really appreciate any feedback I get!


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Carmilla and Danny disagree on the proper manner of seducing a girl.

“Heyyyyy, the ladies are here!” Will yelled, obnoxiously and to no-one in particular, as they arrived.

 

Carmilla pushed passed him and cast her eyes over the scene that lay before her: the party was already in full swing, with revellers engaged in different degrees of drunken debauchery. Several frat bros were shirtless, and gathered around one of their number, who was necking some kind of florescent orange drink. The drink was sloshing down the side of his mouth and onto his chest as he glugged to the cheers and shouts of his bros. The Zetas that weren’t participating in the idiotic drinking game were mostly engaged in various stages of contact with the pretty young ladies they had invited.

 

“Ugh, how incredibly adolescent,” Carmilla muttered under her breath. “Let’s just get this over with so we can go.”

 

“Alright,” said Danny, scanning the room.

 

“Good luck finding a target here,” Carmilla said, almost hoping that Danny would just give up on the spot.

 

Danny’s triumphant voice disabused her of that notion. “There! Found her.”

 

Carmilla followed Danny’s gaze to a short girl with curly blonde hair, who looked distinctly uncomfortable with the attention that a large looming frat boy was showing her.

 

“Right, I’m going in!” said Danny, confidently.

 

“Fine, don’t forget I’ll be listening in.” Carmilla tapped her ears. “Try not to mess it up.”

 

Danny strode over there – it was the walk of someone on a mission – that was her first mistake, Carmilla thought, smiling to herself. She found a seat to slouch on, close but not too close to Danny and her little target. This was going to be so much fun.

 

“Excuse me, is he bothering you?” Danny's voice rang loud and clear in Carmilla's ears. Carmilla supposed this was typical of Danny, just barging in there, putting on some kind of saviour act. Completely unsubtle and practically the opposite of what Carmilla had told her to do.

 

“I’m not b-bothering her,” he slurred. “You’re the one that’s…”

 

Carmilla couldn’t hear the other girl, Danny’s target, say anything – clearly she was the mousy type – but the next thing she knew Danny had shoved the frat boy smack into his bros. For a moment it seemed like he might retaliate but someone offered him a jello shot and that seemed sufficient to distract him.

 

“Are you alright?” Danny asked the girl. “Sorry about all that but it seemed like you wanted him out of here.”

 

“Thank you!” the other girl exclaimed, sounding genuinely grateful. It was enough to make Carmilla nauseous. 

 

“No problem. I’m Danny by the way, what’s your name?”

 

“Katherine,” she squeaked.

 

“Nice to meet you, Katherine,” said Danny, sounding friendly and not at all seductive. Carmilla imagined that Danny and Katherine were probably shaking hands right about now, like they were at a business meeting or something. “So, what do you study?”

 

Carmilla felt herself groan out loud. What a cliché question – next Danny would probably be asking what dorm Katherine was living in.

 

“Religious studies and you?”

 

Ah, Religious Studies. Danny had a perfect chance to draw the conversation to the philosophical, to bring the topic around to the questions that had plagued humanity for thousands of years, to at least attempt to make herself seem intriguing and worldly...but of course Danny missed it completely and actually asked the boring question that Carmilla had suspected that she’d ask. “English Literature. Where do you live? I’m over in Stoneward.” 

 

“Beech House,” Katherine said.

 

“Oh! We live pretty close by,” said Danny, sounding overly excited by this not so shocking revelation.

 

“It’s a small campus, idiot, everything is near everything else,” Carmilla muttered under her breath.

 

“Hey, Kitty-Cat,” said Will, ambling over to talk to Carmilla, distracting her enough that she couldn’t hear what was said next.

 

She turned to glare at him. “What do you want?”

 

 He jerked his chin in Danny’s direction. “Your girl is getting her game on – why you sitting in the corner?” Before he even gave her a chance to speak, he answered his own question, sounding irritatingly self-satisfied that he had managed to work out the bleeding obvious. “Oh wait, let me guess, you’re using my party to allow her to practice your _patented seduction techniques?_ ”

 

“Whatever she’s doing out is nothing to do with my techniques,” said Carmilla, before she could stop herself.

 

Will grinned, a sight that always made Carmilla want to punch him. “Well, whatever it is she’s going, it seems to be working.”

 

“Get lost, Will! We’re not meant to know each other, remember?” she snapped.

 

“Ooooh, so grouchy.” Will raised his hands up in a mocking fashion. “Just ‘cause you can’t accept that maybe you should update your pick-up lines a little.”

 

She shot him a venomous look and he wandered off, satisfied that he’d managed to piss her off. She shook her head and tried to refocus her hearing on the conversation between Danny and Katherine.

 

They’d apparently moved on from the basics – Danny was right in the middle of a story. “…and then my sister poured vodka into the ice-tube trays, knowing that I’d use the ice for my healthy berry morning smoothie and well, I’m sure you can guess the rest.”

 

Carmilla frowned, she hadn’t known that Danny had a sister. She supposed she didn't know much about Danny at all - most of the time they spent together, they were arguing or were on the verge of arguing. She wondered what Danny was going to do about her family, whether Mother had told her to cut contact or whether she was going to try to maintain some type of charade of humanity. Mother had made sure that Carmilla's mortal family thought her dead and buried but these days, it was not so easy to cut the cords. One picture on social media and any deception could be broken. 

 

“What happened?” Carmilla heard Katherine ask, breathlessly.

 

“Let’s just say I was more lively during my 9am class than anyone has any right to be. There may have been beatboxing involved but I’ve sworn the witnesses to silence,” Danny said. 

 

Katherine laughed an insipid little laugh that made Carmilla want to rip her head off. None of this had any relation to what Carmilla had told her to do – being all obviously friendly and telling ‘hilarious’ stories was not going to get Danny the target at all. The only reason this girl, Katherine, hadn’t walked away already was that she was an idiot with all the assertiveness of a house plant. Carmilla felt her hand curl up into a loose fist, irritating sparking through her. This had been funny for a while but now it was just annoying. Danny started in on another story and Carmilla just couldn’t take sitting and listening to it any longer. She was sick of watching all the drunkards stumbling around like pathetic toddlers, thinking that their truly insignificant lives meant everything when really, she would live to see them be replaced by the next generation of idiots soon enough. She got up and pushed open the doors, wordlessly walking out. She doubted Danny would notice, being too engrossed in conversation with her victim, and Will could just fuck off – she hadn’t wanted to hang out with him in the first place.

 

The cool night air was refreshing against her skin, a welcome change from the stuffy party. She wandered aimlessly along Silas’ gravel paths. She didn’t feel like sleeping now, she was too awake. She didn’t want to read or look at things online because that would just feel way too much like waiting up for Danny. The stones whispered under her feet, speaking a language that no-one had ever been able to decipher. The ordinary students liked to write it off as just the crunch of their shoes against the pathway but Carmilla knew better. Truth was, you were never really alone in Silas – especially at night.

 

Her wandering eventually led her to one of her favourite patches of grass. Her feet had known where she was going, even if her mind hadn’t. She sat and was immensely glad that the weather had been dry recently. She leaned on her hands and looked up into the sky, letting herself become immersed by the familiar patterns. The stars were a constant even as the world changed before her eyes. She remembered crawling out of her coffin of blood that fateful night, the booms of strange new weaponry ringing in her ears, when the stars were the only ones there to greet her - the only things left unchanged.

 

She knew that some of those stars might already be dead but, then again, so was she.

 

 Silas was small but there was a whole world out there still and, once the job was done, Carmilla could go out and see it again. If she lived long enough, she might even get to journey amongst the stars one day…

 

“Hey,” said Danny, jolting Carmilla out of her thoughts - looked like she had managed to find the famed vampire stealth after all. Carmilla wasn't sure how much time had passed since she left the party but she did notice that Danny was alone. 

 

“Where’s little Katherine?” Carmilla asked, in what she hoped were indifferent tones.

 

“I walked her home,” said Danny, sounding unbearably smug.

 

“You do realise that you did the opposite of what I told you? I asked for seduction and you played it all friendly…I’m sure she thinks that you’ll be a great buddy.”

“

Danny raised an eyebrow, too triumphant to be angry. “Really? How come I have a date with her in two days then?”

 

“That’s not the point, the point is that you didn’t do anything that I said.” snapped Carmilla.

 

“The point is that maybe you’re just bitter that girls prefer a more modern approach to dating rather than whatever antiquated routine you’ve been pulling.”

 

Danny was the second little upstart vampire to have told her that tonight - whatever had happened to respecting your elders? “Listen, Xena, I have a lot more experience in this than you do. Just wait to it’s all crashing down around you – you’ll be begging for my help.”

 

“We’ll just have to see then.” Danny’s tones betrayed her confidence that she’d be the one coming out on top here.

 

“Guess we will.” That seemed like the end of the conversation but Danny did not appear to be going away. “You can go back to the dorm now, Red! No point hanging around if you're not even going to listen.”

 

Danny’s eyes gleamed in the moonlight. “I’m not going back to the dorm. I’m going hunting.”

 

Carmilla’s mouth dropped open. “Hunting? Do I even have to tell you how dangerous that is? We’re trying to keep a low profile here and I know I can’t rely on you to feed without botching it somehow.”

 

Danny gave her a look. “Relax, I’m going to the woods. There’ll be no-one there, trust me. The Summer Society uses those woods all the time, I know the schedule like the back of my hand.” Danny's limbs were jittering with frenetic energy; she was hungry and not just for the feed. Tonight's flirtation had only gotten her riled up. She was looking for a kill.   


 

“Don’t come crying to me when you get staked just because you couldn’t resist the lure of tasty squirrels,” Carmilla muttered, a strange envy shooting through her. Oh to be young and bloodthirsty...

 

“Join me,” said Danny, suddenly, holding her hand out to Carmilla. “Come on! What have you got to lose?”

 

Carmilla found herself taking the hand, pulling herself to her feet. “I suppose I would get in trouble if I didn’t prevent you from getting yourself killed.”

 

Notes

I considered making Danny’s target someone that we knew, like Perry, but I decided against it because I just think it would be a bit too contrived. Also, I offer up my apologies for any astronomical inaccuracies that may come up in this fic.

 

Anyways, please leave me a comment and let me know what you think of the chapter. I really appreciate all comments!


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Carmilla and Danny go hunting together.

Chapter warnings: violence and animal death.

Thin beams of moonlight pieced brightly through the minute gaps in the trees. Trapped under the canopy of dark, dark green, she could no longer see the stars. Pine needles coated the ground, tiny, and probably unnoticeable to the human eye in this light. Carmilla could feel them shift under her feet as she followed Danny deeper and deeper into the heart of the forest.

Carmilla could see – no, sense - creatures moving in the trees: owls and squirrels and even insects. She could feel them all. She suspected Danny could feel them too but the other girl did not stop. Perhaps she was looking for something bigger. Danny hasn’t spoken a word sense they entered the forest. Her face had set into a determined mask, her mouth a barely visible line. Carmilla would have thought her angry but for the look in her eye. It was a sort of reverent gleam, a barely restrained love of the hunt.

Carmilla remembered that.

She didn’t speak either. Now was not the time for their usual back and forth bickering and what else could they possibly say to one another? No, it was better to stay silent for they both spoke the language of the hunt more naturally than any tongue. Carmilla loved language but it was a luxury. This was instinct.

They walked on for a while before Danny stopped. Carmilla didn’t have to ask why – she could smell the scent of deer on the air. So this was Danny’s intended prey. Carmilla had hunted deer here before but it had been long enough that she had almost forgotten – the ease of blood banks had removed the need to go out of her way to hunt. But Danny had clearly done this recently; Carmilla wondered whether this was what the Summer Society did with their time.

She suspected that they usually killed with bows and arrows, not barehanded and pointy-fanged.

Danny looked to Carmilla and waited. If Carmilla didn’t know better, she might have taken it for a gesture of respect. Or perhaps it was just uncertainty; despite the fact that Danny had marched through these woods, she’d never hunted this way. She was still new and mother had put all these ideas in her head about Carmilla being a mentor.

Carmilla didn’t feel like standing around and dissecting it, so she decided she had better get this hunt started. There was a large stag just over a mile away. It would have been safe had they been human. She jerked forward, ready to run and then stopped. She had been about to transform, to show Danny what a superior vampire could really do with the advantages of four legs and claws, but something had stopped her. She still wasn’t sure how much mother had told Danny. Everything in her was telling her to hold this back; there was no need to give Danny extra information if she didn’t already know.

Danny was looking at her strangely now.

‘She’s wondering why I stopped,’ Carmilla thought. She shrugged it off and bounded off after the deer. Danny would have to stop thinking and follow her now. The small sounds of Danny’s feet skimming over the forest floor confirmed her suspicions.

Soon Danny was right beside her, threatening to over-take. Carmilla pushed harder, keeping them level. A glance to the side showed her that Danny was grinning. Her teeth flashed white against the darkness. On four legs Carmilla could have easily shot past her but the knowledge secret superiority was balm enough for her ego. Let Danny think that she was capable of surpassing her.

The deer was up ahead. It saw them and veered up to the side, trying to make a dash for it. But it was too late. Carmilla leapt and her teeth found flesh. There was a moment of desperate struggle from the beast. She could feel it’s blood pumping frantically as she drank and drank. Then there was a snap. Then it stopped.

She looked up. The deer’s neck was between Danny’s long-fingered hands and Danny’s face was buried in there. She was ravenously drinking. Carmilla lowered her gaze and sunk her own fangs in. The blood was still warm and sweet. She hadn’t shared prey like this in a long time, not since she’d last seen Mattie. She felt hyper-aware of Danny’s presence. There was an inevitable bond that came from sharing a kill, something that transcended like or dislike. It just was.

They drained the stag dry in a matter of minutes. Human blood tasted better but the thrill of drinking from a fresh kill made up for the inferiority of flavour. She disengaged from the animal and got up, looking down at the carcass they had left. They’d have to burn or bury that. They shouldn’t leave a trace.

A drop of blood dripped from her chin and Carmilla’s hand flew up to her face. She touched the blood coating her lips with her fingertips. Danny’s mouth was similarly stained red. She wore it proudly. Carmilla touched her fingertips to her tongue but made no attempt to wipe the rest away.

Danny grabbed her hand and pulled it away from her face. Her skin hummed strangely under Danny’s touch.

“No need. There are more deer in these woods,” Danny said, breaking the silence. They had gone so long without speech that it seemed intimate somehow

Carmilla nodded but they neither of them moved. Danny was still holding onto Carmilla’s hand.

“What happens if one vampire drinks the blood of another?” Danny asked and that predatory light had returned to her eyes. This time it wasn’t aimed at the deer.

Carmilla looked straight back at her. She would not flinch before a vampire only just turned. “You know, vampire blood has never really appealed to me but if you want to engage in cannibalism, then find someone else – I hear Will’s available.” It felt wrong, offering up a snarky comment here and now, but she didn’t know what else there was to say.

Danny didn’t take the bait. She lifted Carmilla’s hand up to her mouth instead. Danny’s sharp teeth teased over her skin and Carmilla was ready to snatch her hand away but Danny did not bite down. Carmilla felt the fangs retract. Danny pressed her lips to Carmilla’s hand, in a brief but searing kiss.

Danny let go before Carmilla had any time to process it.

“Come on, let’s get another one.” She ran off into the woods, a blur of impossibly fast motion.

Carmilla ran after her.

 

Notes

In the time it has taken for me to write this chapter, vampire Danny has become canon! So, my apologies for the slow update but I just can’t believe that Danny’s actually going to be a vampire in the show now! It’s so exciting!

I had quite a bit of trouble with this chapter – I kept wanting to write it in present tense for some reason. I think I’ve caught all the instances of slipping into present tense but please let me know if you spot any that I’ve missed!

As ever, reviews are much appreciated!


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